Paradise in the Afterlife
by Hime Juusan
Summary: After Robin sacrificed himself to kill Grima, he wakes up to a future parallel world where Grima never existed. There, he meets a familiar yet unfamiliar woman named Lucina. Will he return to the past or stay in the future that he didn't belong in? /Male Avatar x Lucina
1. Chapter 1

This was it. The final battle was coming to an end.

I just needed to launch one final magic spell and the Fell Dragon would be no more.

And my life as well.

I heard my comrades' desperate cries to stop, more specifically Chrom's. His throat must have been hoarse from all the screaming he had to do to get my attention ever since the battle started.

"Robin, don't do it!" I heard him say.

My mouth formed a smile that didn't quite reach my eyes. Don't do what? Don't sacrifice myself and let you kill the Fell Dragon? Let Grima come back alive once more in a different era and cause grief and pain for our descendants? Is that what you really want, Chrom?

No, I don't think so.

You say that you want me to live now, but I know you will regret it later. If you don't regret it while you're still alive, then you will regret it in the afterlife. When you watch your descendants suffer because you let your so-called 'best friend' live, because you let the Fell Dragon live.

That's right.

We are best friends.

I closed my eyes tightly. No, that wasn't the right term to describe us. We aren't best friends. Our bond is stronger than that. It was stronger than friendship.

We are brothers.

And as your brother, do you really think I'll be happy to live? Because to live means that I will be your source of pain in the future. If not your pain, then your descendants' pain. If not their pain, then the world's pain.

The future's pain.

What would happen if I continued to live? Grima would be asleep for the rest of our generation, but what about the future? There's no doubt that he would wake up again. Does that mean that the grim future that Lucina came from will simply be delayed to a later time period? Are we going to simply throw the harsh burden that Lucina and the other children had to carry to a later generation?

Do you really want that, Chrom?!

Why couldn't we just end everything right here. Choose the final decision that we all know will end the dragon once and for all. This isn't just about me; it's about the world, the future's outcome.

So why can't you accept it?

Why can't you accept my death?

Is my death going to cause you so much grief that you're willing to risk the world to save my life? Is it because you couldn't forget about Emmeryn's sacrifice? Is that why you are so against my death?

If that's the case, then it really is best that I die now.

You won't be able to move on if you continue to be so naïve, believing that you can prevent every one of your loved ones' death.

Kindness couldn't save everyone. Emmeryn tried so hard to stop a war from brewing and it was all for naught. She sacrificed herself against your wishes. She wanted to throw her life away for our sake. She wanted to die. So what makes you think that you can save me now?

Besides, do you really have the right to stop someone who wanted to die?

Even if I continued to live, the guilt will kill me little by little. My heart and soul would be reduced to nothing. I would be a dead man walking, knowing that I prolonged the fell dragon's lifespan simply because I decided to selfishly live on.

In order to gain something, you also need to sacrifice something in return.

That's why I'm doing this. Because I know that my death will benefit everyone. Maybe you would grieve, but you would move on, along with all our other comrades. My death will be a life lesson for you, for everyone.

Accept reality. We all know it's harsh and cruel, but there's nothing we can do about it.

I slowly opened my eyes. I glared at the fell dragon with determination. Taking a deep breath, I raised my hand. I started to cast a spell. As I chant the words, I turned my head to look for Lucina. I don't know why, but I really wanted to see how she would react to this.

When my eyes finally found her, I saw something that I never expected. Lucina's facial expression was horrified. Her eyes were filled with fear and her jaw clenched in anticipation. She was holding Falchion like it was a lifeline. Her hands held it so tightly that they trembled.

I didn't expect her reaction to be like this.

I assumed that she would be somewhat relieved with my death because she tried to kill me once. She suffered a lot because of what I would become in the future. Her world was almost entirely destroyed because my future self killed Chrom and lost his will to Grima. I knew that if Chrom didn't interrupt us, Lucina would definitely have killed me that day. She hesitated at first, but I'm sure she would have killed me.

I can't say she would be happy because I knew that she isn't the kind of person to be happy about another's death, no matter how terrible that person may be.

Just like her father.

For some reason, seeing that stricken expression on her face left a terrible feeling in my chest. I never saw her like that before, even when she talked about how hopeless she felt about changing the future, or how devastating her world was like. I don't think she considered me a friend, but maybe she saw me as an ally to confide in, for a short time in the beginning at least.

Now, I'm not so sure.

I sighed. It doesn't matter what she thinks of me anymore. I was going to die soon.

Turning my gaze away from her, I faced Grima again. The spell was completed; bolts of magic erupted from my hand and hit him right in the chest, where his heart laid. He screamed at me as his body started to deteriorate.

Black clouds of mist appeared and his body turned into ashes of black dust, floating away into the distant horizon.

I felt my body floating away, too.

I stared at my feet as they started to disappear into nothingness. It was strange. I used to be scared of dying, of the very concept of death. But now, when my life was finally going to end, I didn't feel afraid at all.

I felt serene.

I felt peace.

I felt _free_.

It was then, that I knew that I would never regret this. Because Grima was gone and I knew the world was safe from him forever. Knowing this, I can die peacefully.

"Robin! No!"

That must be Chrom.

I laughed quietly, which I knew wasn't the best course of action in this situation.

With the best smile I can muster up at the moment, I gave a fleeting glance towards my comrades then at Chrom. His face was contorted in sorrow; his eyes held great pain. How ironic, I never wanted to be the reason why he had that expression. It was always because of someone else, but not me, never me, until now.

I let my eyes close once again.

"Thank you, Chrom. For...everything..."

I wanted to say so much more, but I didn't have that time anymore.

"Tell the others...my last thoughts were of them..."

I _always_ thought about them. Because they were all I _could_ remember. Because the memories I have lost had yet to return. They will never return now that I was so close to death.

Perhaps I do regret something. I regret not making more memories with them, to spend more time with them, to make more memories for everyone to cherish. I will never truly die, because I will continue to live on, in their memories.

One thing that I've known since meeting Chrom was that memories were indeed very precious.

I said my last words to them and waved with my hand in farewell.

"May we meet again, in a better life..."

I heard Chrom yell my name one last time before I felt myself disappear into the unknown.

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P.S. Grammar/spelling mistakes may be present.


	2. Chapter 2

My body felt light.

I was awake, but my eyes were still closed. I wasn't able to open them no matter how hard I tried. All I saw was pitch-black darkness, which was the typical scenery when eyelids covered my line of sight. Was this what death was like? I wondered if I have to stay like this for the rest of my life—or death. I wished I knew how everyone reacted to my death. It probably wasn't pleasant.

Oh well, at least I knew that Grima was dead.

I didn't know how long I stayed like this, thinking about what was happening while I was dead, but after some time, I started to hear voices. A sweet aroma invaded my nostrils.

I first heard a male voice speak out, "But we have to do SOMETHING."

"Then what do you suggest we do?" This voice sounded distinctly female.

"I…I don't know…"

I unconsciously wrinkled my eyebrows. I knew these voices. This felt oddly…familiar. I finally felt a twitch in my eyelids. I let my eyes flutter open and I caught a flash of cerulean blue hair. Was that Chrom? I let out a groan. I should be dead, but did I somehow travel to the past? I don't think I have the energy to go through the same thing again for another two years.

I blinked once and then twice. I barely made out who the person above me was. The person had a smaller and slimmer outline than Chrom. It wasn't him; it was Lucina.

Lucina noticed I was awake and smiled. "I see you're awake now. The flowers isn't the best place to take a nap on you know."

"Huh?" I sat up. Sure enough, I was sitting in the middle of a large field littered with sunflowers. That explained the overwhelming scent. I glanced around. Although there weren't any flowers at the time, I was sure that this was the same field where Chrom and I first met.

"Here." Lucina offered her hand. "Take my hand."

I took her hand in my own. What a bizarre turn of events. It was just like that day I met Chrom, with Lucina taking his place. She pulled me up and I stood up groggily on my feet. I smiled back at her. "Thank you, Lucina."

She looked at me in confusion. "You know who I am?"

Now I was confused too. "Of course, why wouldn't I?"

"You know him, Lucina?" I turned to face the person who asked the question. It was Owain. I wondered why I didn't notice him earlier. He must have been the male voice I heard in the beginning.

"No, I don't think so. I don't…remember him," Lucina replied back.

"I don't remember meeting him either."

Now I was not only confused, but in total shock as well. Not only did Lucina not remember me, but Owain didn't seem to either.

Then I saw Frederick next to them and I gawked at him. He was clearly Frederick, but he looked so _different_. He wasn't bald anywhere, but he had much less hair than the last time I saw him. He gained a few wrinkles and fine lines around his face, too. I couldn't have been gone for _that_ long. He seemed to have aged in years, decades even.

He was irritated by my staring and asked, "Is there something on my face, young lad?"

Young lad? Where did that come from? He never called me that before. I wasn't that much younger than him. I tried to mumble out something, but failed. What was I supposed to say? Did he know who I was? Or was he just like Lucina and Owain?

I looked at him closely and gave up hope. I saw no hint of recognition in his eyes.

A hand reached out in front of face and waved at me. Owain frowned a bit. "Hmm…He isn't responding."

Lucina stared at me. "Is he in shock? I suppose we can't interrogate him at the moment then."

Frederick cut in, "What if he's in league with the bandits that attacked the town earlier and is trying to get us off guard?"

"I won't condemn someone without proof of their wrongdoing, Frederick." She shifted her gaze from me to him. "Or are you going to disregard my beliefs?"

"All the same, we should proceed with caution, milady. We do not know who he is or where he came from."

"I agree with you on that. What should we do with him then?" She gestured towards me.

"Why don't we bring him with us for now? We can always knock him out if he starts to act fishy in any way," Owain suggested.

"We can always interrogate him later. Once we establish that he is not a threat, he is free to go."

They all looked at me and nodded. I gulped. This was definitely not good.

XXX

For the rest of the day, I followed them like a helpless puppy. It was obvious by now that those three weren't going to show any signs of remembering who I was. I sighed in worry. I woke up in that field with no idea how I got there in the first place. Was I somehow teleported there? But how and why?

Frederick stopped walking. "It will get dark soon. We should stop here for today and make camp."

I looked out at the sunset. The sky had a mixture of colors ranging from red, pink, and orange to a darker shade of sky blue. We listened to Frederick and made camp. Everyone gathered firewood and Frederick started a fire to keep us warm from the chilly night that would come.

Soon, night came and the stars glittered brightly in the dark sky. We all sat in a circle around the makeshift fireplace. The bright embers of the flames illuminated our faces as we stared at it. The three started a conversation that I took no part in. I was strangers to them after all.

All this time, I was thinking about my current predicament. It didn't make sense; they didn't know who I was. And Frederick—I stopped at that train of thought. That's right. Frederick looked much older, yet Lucina and Owain appeared exactly the same. If my conclusion was correct then my fate was doomed.

I asked tentatively, "Can any of you tell me today's date?"

Frederick told me the date and my eyes widened to large saucers. The year he said was almost two decades from now. Did that mean I was teleported to the future—to a different world?! What was I supposed to do here? I had no means of returning back to the past. I didn't even know how. I remembered Lucina traveling to my world through a portal, but I also didn't know if you can return back home through it either.

I stared at the three people in front of me in awe. Still, it was a once in a lifetime experience, traveling to another world and meeting other versions of people you know wasn't something you can do every day.

"Are you feeling better now?"

"Hmm?" I turned my head to face Lucina and back to the fire, feeling sheepish. Now that I thought about it, it was stupid of me not to respond earlier when we first met. "…Yes."

"In that case, will you tell us your name?"

From what I know of, my name didn't reveal anything important. "Robin."

Owain spoke, "Like the bird?"

"Yes, like the bird." They did have birds called robins in Ylisse, but it wasn't easy to find them. They didn't live in Plegia at all so I always pondered on why my parents gave me that name. I don't think I would ever find out. I stuck with the assumption that they were both dead now, but I wasn't entirely sure. My father was dead, but I knew nothing about my mother.

"His clothing seems to be of Plegian origin," Frederick remarked.

"Are you implying that he hails from Plegia?"

Frederick glared at me. "Maybe, but appearances can be deceiving."

I knew that he wanted me to tell them more about myself. I was sure that I was from Plegia, but was Plegia still at odds with Ylisse? It they were, then maybe I should lie about where I came from. "I'm a traveler. I've been one for as long as I can remember, so I can't identify myself with any one nation." Not any nation here in this world at least. A lot can change in two decades and I might give myself away when they learn that I didn't know something common about the country I was supposedly from.

"A traveler? Were you just taking a nap on the ground on purpose?"

"No, I was…attacked by bandits. Before I knew it, I was ambushed. Then, I blacked out. They probably thought I was dead and left me alone." I thought it was a believable excuse. I remembered Frederick talking about bandits when we were still at the field.

Owain held his chin and said, "That explains why you were in shock earlier. It was probably from the ambush."

Frederick narrowed his eyes. "That doesn't explain why he knew milady's name."

Now I was nervous. I completely forgot about that. I felt my hands shaking.

_Why_ did I have to say Lucina's name?

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* * *

Sorry if it sucks in any way, I'm not used to writing in first person. Usually because I dislike the infinite number of times that I have to use 'I' but I'm starting to get used to it. Any critiques/reviews to make this story better would be nice. :)

P.S. Grammar/spelling mistakes may be present.


	3. Chapter 3

Think, Robin, _think_.

What's a good explanation why I knew Lucina's name without spilling out the truth?

After several seconds, I finally thought up of a good coverup. I prayed that it was enough. "I traveled through a few villages in Ylisse. Through the villagers I have met, I learned about the princess of Ylisse. They told me her name and what her appearance was like." I glanced at Lucina. "They seemed to be quite fond of you."

Lucina was a bit embarrassed at this revelation. "I…see."

The intensity of Frederick's glare did not waver. "I do not believe him." I groaned inwardly. This was why Chrom gave him the title: 'Frederick the Wary'.

And he was indeed wary.

Unfortunately, his current target, or victim, was _me_. "I swear that I'm telling the tru—" At that very moment, I heard a rustling. I stopped talking and surveyed the trees near us. I was certain that the source of the sound came from there.

Lucina reacted first. She stood up and took Falchion out of her scabbard, "We have company." Also standing up, Owain and Frederick immediately took out their weapons.

Holding a sword in one hand, Owain murmured in distaste, "I guess we can't sleep peacefully just yet."

I hurriedly grabbed the hilt of my sword and bolted upward on my feet. I was fully expecting Risen to emerge from the trees, but what came out weren't Risen.

Frederick whispered breathlessly, "Rogue thieves. Be very cautious."

I didn't need to be told twice. I nodded, even though I knew that he wasn't looking at me.

Thieves were trained to be fast and agile, using stealth as a main weapon. Hitting them with a magic spell from a distance would be a lot more effective, but it was going to be tricky. They needed to be distracted first. It didn't help that it was dark since our vision was limited. But then again, what kind of thieves were they if they were going to attack and rob us in broad daylight?

At least the fireplace gave us some light.

A thief moved towards us and in a blur of motion, Lucina blocked his attack and slashed his throat. He went down instantly. The other thieves moved as well, Owain and Frederick took action to take care of them.

I counted: One, two, three…Nine. Nine minus one because Lucina just killed one. Eight of them were out in the open. That was an estimate though; they might have allies that were still cowering behind the wilderness.

A thief raised his sword to attack me. As he was too busy concentrating on his attack, I saw an opening. I lifted my own sword and dismembered his sword arm. He howled loudly as he clutched his arm, or what was left of it, with his hand. I winced as blood poured out from the severed limb. I sliced off limbs from enemies before, but that didn't mean I liked to see it. I felt a wave of sympathy for him even though he was my enemy. I finished him off quickly with a swipe from my blade to end his misery.

I jerked my head around, checking to see if any of my 'comrades' needed aid or if any of the thieves were closing in on me. Owain was cutting down the thieves left and right. Frederick was by his side; he used a lance to stab anyone that dared to approach them.

They seemed to have everything under control so I searched for Lucina. At first, Lucina looked like she had an advantage. She gracefully landed sword strokes at her two opponents until a third one jumped out from behind her and prepared to strike.

In a panic, I took out my tome and hastily threw a fire spell at the sly thief. His eyes widened as the blazing inferno hit him and he tumbled away far from Lucina. Lucina turned around and locked her eyes with mine, surprise on her face before killing the thieves she was focusing on. They landed in a messy heap on the ground.

I scanned my surroundings once more to see if there were any more thieves lurking around, but found none. I sighed in relief.

I noticed the small rivers of blood that trickled down the blade of my sword. I was going to have to clean that up later. There's a saying that I heard a long time ago: The bloodier the blade, the duller it gets. Not sure if that's true or not, but I always washed my swords after battles because I hated to see dried blood layered on them. The red substance never failed to remind me that I killed people in cold blood.

It never failed to remind me that I _murdered_ them.

It was common for people to kill each other in war. It was even more common for people to die in war. I was used to it, but I didn't enjoy it at all.

"That's the last of them," Lucina finally spoke out. She walked towards me after she sheathed Falchion. "You can use magic." She looked down at my sword. "And swords."

I responded, "Yes."

"That's amazing! There aren't many people in the world that can use both physical weaponry and tomes," Owain said as he stood next to Lucina.

Frederick came over and entered the conversation. "You saved milady's life."

Not really. Lucina was an expert swordswoman. She's not a person you would want to underestimate. I knew she could have taken care of that thief by herself, but sometimes it was better to be safe than sorry. "Maybe, but I'm sure she would have pulled through without my help."

"Even if that's true, you did try to help her."

Lucina lifted the corners of her mouth. "Frederick is right. You tried to help me and I think that's more than enough to deserve praise. You have my gratitude."

I felt my cheeks heating up. I could barely keep the blush from appearing on my face. It's best to give in rather than deny it. "You're welcome."

She nodded in approval. "You're a traveler, right?"

"I am."

"Then do you want to travel to Ylisstol with us? You can visit the castle."

Frederick was alarmed. "Milady, you cannot be serious."

"What?" It's not like I never went to the castle before. I mean, seriously, I lived there for two years already, but I have to remember that she didn't know that. It was a great honor for any outsider to enter Ylisse Castle.

Lucina continued, "He has proven to me that he is not a threat. While we were distracted with those thieves earlier, Robin could have simply fled. We were holding him captive, so why wouldn't he? But instead, he decided to stay in order to aid us. Isn't that right? Besides…I believe his words to us before the attack was the truth."

Frederick wasn't convinced. "He is still not trustworthy in my eyes."

Owain grinned at me, "I'm sorry, Frederick, but I have to agree with Lucina on this one."

With the two royals against him, Frederick had no choice, but to comply. He gritted out, "…Fine. He can come with us, but if I sense anything amiss, I'll take care of him myself."

Scared, I dryly laughed in my head.

If I did anything to anger Frederick, which wasn't hard to do, I'm good as gone from the face of the earth. But at least Lucina inherited one of Chrom's most notable traits. They both put a fair amount of their trust in others even if they were strangers that they just met.

I was conflicted on whether or not that particular characteristic was good...or bad.

XXX

Days later, we were able to reach the outskirts of the capital.

Nothing out of the norm happened during that time. The time I spent with the group was rather uneventful, aside from Frederick's further interrogation of me. I can't blame him or anything, but I found it annoying when he repeatedly asked me the same questions again and again to see if I would accidentally slip out a piece of unwanted information unintentionally.

When we arrived at Ylisstol, I was amazed by how much it has changed. Buildings were taller and grander. Ylissean citizens were happily talking to each other about the latest gossip and news. It made me happy to see it prosper, even in the future.

But it also bothered me at the same time.

I knew that the main reason why Lucina went back to the past was to undo the cruelty that the future would become. The future I saw right now was nothing like the apocalypse that she described it as. Maybe it didn't happen until later? But didn't Lucina mention that she lost her father to Grima at a young age? The more I think about it, the less it made sense.

Something doesn't feel right about all this...

We walked along the streets of the capital. As we did so, I explored. I made note of the major differences of the city between now and decades before. It was as if I was at a different city. But in reality, it was an older version of Ylisstol, the same place I called home.

When we stopped in front of one of the houses, Lucina started to inform us, "Look, my father is over there." She pointed to where he was on the street we were at.

I smiled. Chrom must have continued Emmeryn's tradition of walking through the streets to greet her citizens. I was finally going to see how Chrom changed over the years. I gazed at where she was pointing and froze. My smile fell and was replaced with utter shock.

I saw Chrom, but he wasn't the reason why I was shocked. I instead focused my attention on the person next to him. The person who walked alongside him was a woman with long blond hair. It was not Lissa. Lissa did not have the mark of Naga; much less have it ingrained on the center of her forehead.

It was Emmeryn.

Emmeryn was _alive_.

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* * *

My first attempt_ ever_ at a battle scene.

Originally, I wasn't going to have any fight scenes and was just going to write briefly that they happened, but not go in-depth to what happened during them. But decided against it because I thought maybe the story would feel...hollow without them. So I decided to experiment a little. Surprisingly, the scene was fun to write. Though I'm never going to make them super detailed because I'm squeamish towards writing explicit violent scenes. Don't expect my future battle scenes to be great quality either. They will probably stay in Robin's POV so that it wouldn't be confusing, but I might change my mind. Who knows.

I'm still not sure about writing them, but I will write more of them if readers want to read battles scenes in this story. Don't forget to review if you have the time. :)

P.S. Grammar/spelling mistakes may be present.


	4. Chapter 4

I whispered in a low enough voice so that no one would hear me, "Emmeryn?"

It was impossible. Emmeryn was dead. I remembered her death as if it was yesterday. Two years ago, I saw her jump off the cliff and fall to her doom. I had to be seeing things. It must have been my imagination. I rubbed my eyes with a hand and blinked.

She's still there.

Alright then, I could safely say that my eyes aren't playing tricks on me.

But this doesn't make any sense. I saw her die. Chrom and Lissa saw her die, too. Everyone did. We all saw her lying on the ground with blood pooling all around her as life faded from her eyes.

"Robin?" Frederick turned his head to stare at me. I knew that he still doesn't trust me yet, but I swore I heard a bit of concern in his tone.

I replied, "Uh, nothing's wrong. I was just surprised that's all. I didn't expect to see Princess Lucina's Father and Aunt here."

Lucina apparently listened to our exchange. She asked me, "I told you to call me just by my name, didn't I?"

"Yes, you did, but Frederick wouldn't be happy about it."

"It's alright. I said that you could call me by my name. No titles are necessary. You don't have to worry about what others say."

"I guess you're right, Prin—I mean, Lucina." There was no end to the similarities between her and Chrom. Why didn't I notice this until now? It was obvious that unmasked 'Marth' looked a lot like Chrom when your compared their facial features, which I already knew, but I didn't notice any similarities in personalities until recently.

"Lucina, I see that you are back."

That voice belonged to Chrom, deeper than the voice I was used to, but it was definitely Chrom. He must have walked over when he saw Lucina. Now that he was closer to us, I could see that his appearance changed. His hair was longer and cropped near his shoulders. He looked wiser and more experienced.

"Yes, Father. We have been held back for a day due to a bandit attack on a village we passed by. I apologize for any inconvenience my delayed absence has caused," Lucina said.

"There is no need for an apology. Everything is fine. I'm glad that you returned safely."

Emmeryn asked, "And who might this young man be?" She smiled at me kindly.

"I'm…Robin." That smile scared me, even though it was Emmeryn's. This was unnerving. Technically, I was introducing myself to an older version of person that was supposed to be dead and buried under ten feet of soil. And now she just spoke to me as if nothing ever happened.

"He's a traveler. He came to our aid when thieves attacked us during the night."

"Is that right?" Chrom's eyes bore into my own and my stomach lurched uncomfortably. Like the others, I could tell that he didn't recognize me.

"Yes, as a token of gratitude, I suggested that he could visit the castle."

Emmeryn continued to smile. "Ah, I see, that's kind of you." She bowed her head a few inches down. "I am Emmeryn, the current Exalt of Ylisse. Thank you for helping my niece and nephew."

Chrom nodded his head. "My name is Chrom, I am Emmeryn's brother. You have my gratitude as well."

So Emmeryn is still the Exalt. "Please, you do not need to thank me. I was glad to be of help."

"No, that won't do. You were courteous to both Lucina and Owain. So please allow us to return your kindness," Chrom retorted.

I didn't like this one bit. Chrom was being too formal to me for my taste, but I didn't want to be too persistent in my protests. "If that is your wish, then I have no complaints."

"It's official, Robin will be accompanying us." Then Chrom asked all of us, "Does anyone have any protests about this?"

No one spoke up.

Strange, I thought Frederick would protest about how suspicious I was, especially to Chrom of all people. Perhaps he'll tell him in private, when I'm not there to hear what they're saying.

"No one?" Chrom turned around and gestured to the path that led to Ylisse Castle. "Well, if there are no objections, then we should start heading back to the castle."

XXX

I noticed that castle didn't change much, if it did at all. It looked exactly the same from what I could remember of it the last time I was there. I was grateful for that though. At least there is one thing here that I was familiar with; everything else seemed foreign to me. When we entered the castle, a woman with blond ponytails ran up to us.

"Hi there, everyone!" Lissa greeted us. She gave us a huge smile.

It's nice to see that she hasn't changed much, except for her appearance of course. I wondered why she wasn't with Chrom and Emmeryn earlier. Maybe she wanted to watch over the castle while they were gone.

She hugged Owain, and then Lucina. "It's nice to see you two again!" Then she noticed Frederick. "Oh, it's nice to see you, too, Frederick!"

Frederick nodded. "I'm glad that we were able to get here safely."

"You say that every time! If you worry too much, you'll get white hair soon."

"I do not have a problem with white hair. It won't harm anyone."

"But it appears rather unappealing to the eyes of others, don't you agree?" Chrom joked.

Emmeryn chuckled at Chrom's poor attempt on humor. "Maybe, but I'm sure Frederick would appear appealing with or without white strands of hair sprouting from his head."

"Thank you, your grace," Frederick replied.

I quietly laughed at their small interaction. It was nice to see them taking part in such an entertaining conversation about the unwanted consequences of stress. Lissa heard me laugh and asked, "Who is he?"

Lucina answered, "He is a traveler who aided us in our time of need."

Lissa's eyes brightened. "Ooh, what a nice young man." She clapped her hands together. "I must thank you for helping them. I'm Lissa. It's nice to meet you!"

"I'm Robin. It's nice to meet you, too." I cringed at the thought of being called a 'young man' by someone who used to be younger than me.

XXX

After Lissa's short introduction, Emmeryn said that she still haven't finished her royal duties for the day. The royal sibling trio decided to leave us to ourselves. Frederick and Lucina followed them, leaving Owain and I alone together. Owain insisted that he showed me to the guest bedrooms, saying that I was going to stay at the castle for the next few days.

And again, Frederick didn't bother to protest.

As Owain and I strided through a hallway, I realized that it might be a good time to ask Owain about current events. I need to learn as much as I could about what's happening right now.

I asked, "Owain, can I ask you a question?"

Owain nodded. "You already did, but you can ask more questions."

"I am a little behind when it comes to news these days and I was wondering about Ylisse's foreign relations with other countries, such as Plegia."

"Foreign relations?" Owain thought about it. "Let's see…Recently, there have been disputes with Regna Ferox, but they're not so bad that they would strain our friendship with them. I don't think we had any major conflicts regarding other nations for awhile now, not in the last three decades at least."

Three decades? That can't be right. Three decades didn't fit within the timeline. I estimated that there was a war with Plegia a little over two decades ago, two years before Lucina was born. I was confused. "But wasn't there a war against King Gangrel about two decades ago?"

Owain widened his eyes at my outburst. "A war against Plegia? And against King Gangrel?" Then he frowned. "Have you been living under a rock your entire life? Plegia's been allied with Ylisse for centuries."

It took me a moment for me to correctly process what Owain just said.

I was stunned. "Allied for _centuries_?"

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* * *

I know, short and boring chapter. I'll try to make it up to you in the next few chapters though. Forgive my poor attempt at the medieval-style English the game uses though, or at least I think it's medieval. I should warn you that some characters will be OOC, since there are major differences in the parallel world that results in major changes. That includes Lucina, too.

Preview of next chapter: Robin learns more surprising facts about the parallel world. He meets more of his old friends as well as friends from the second generation. Slight development on his relationship with Lucina.

P.S: Grammar/spelling mistakes may be present.


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